


Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast

by celeste9



Category: Primeval
Genre: Fae & Fairies, Gen, Inspired by Art, Plotty, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-10
Updated: 2014-06-10
Packaged: 2018-02-04 04:42:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1765879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celeste9/pseuds/celeste9
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the reports started coming in, Lester thought they were a joke. ‘Giant snake attacks London’ seemed more a headline pulled from a tabloid than anything that deserved the attention of his team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the primeval_denial Art Prompt Challenge using [this amazing art](http://primeval-denial.livejournal.com/4371055.html) from eriah211, who also made the matching header and icon. Thanks to fififolle for the beta. Title is of course from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll. For 'supernatural happenings' on my Primeval bingo card.

[ ](http://s362.photobucket.com/user/ceteste9/media/HEADER-CELESTE_zps36432e91.jpg.html)

When the reports started coming in, Lester thought they were a joke. ‘Giant snake attacks London’ seemed more a headline pulled from a tabloid than anything that deserved the attention of his team. No, it was likely Christine hoping to make a fool of him, nothing more.

That was before Connor showed him the news footage.

“Where did it come from?” Lester asked.

“Dunno exactly,” Connor said. “You know we haven’t had an alert in--”

“So what you’re telling me is your detector doesn’t work properly.”

Connor winced. “That’s not fair. Perhaps the anomaly opened somewhere that interfered with--”

Lester upheld his hand and Connor quieted. “No excuses, please. We’ll deal with that later. Tell me you can at least identify the creature.”

If anything, Connor just looked even shiftier. “That’s the thing, I can’t. There is no record of any creature like this. Not even Titanoboa grew this large.”

Lester sighed. “Excellent. An impossible snake came out of an impossible anomaly to wreak havoc in London. This day really couldn’t get any better, could it?”

-

By the time they had mobilised, the snake had curled itself around Westminster Bridge. The police had already cordoned off the area and they were quite happy to stand back and let the ARC take the lead.

Becker stared. The snake somehow looked even bigger than it had on the news. “There aren’t any guns in the ARC big enough to take that thing down. Perhaps we can blow it up.” Actually, that might be fun. Becker hadn’t got to blow anything up in ages.

“You aren’t blowing it up,” Abby said, glaring at him. “It isn’t hurting anyone.”

“Look at it! This isn’t Rex, Abby. This is an enormous monster snake that could probably eat half of London.”

“But it hasn’t! It hasn’t hurt a single person.”

Becker gestured towards the city. “It’s smashed up half of Westminster!”

“Only so it could get away, don’t you see? It was running from us, not attacking.” Abby was fierce when she was angry, her little pixie face lit up with emotion.

“What do you propose we do with it, then? I’m all ears.”

“We can try to knock it out, same as we do for the other creatures.”

Becker snorted. “And exactly what dosage is going to knock that thing out?”

Abby finally seemed slightly unsure of herself. “I’ll have to work on that.”

“And say that worked, what are we going to do with it when it’s unconscious? I don’t think it will fit in one of the trucks.”

“Perhaps we could hire something, or bring in the military,” Abby hedged. “Airlift it?”

Sighing, Becker said into his radio, “Ryan?”

“I’m here, Becker.”

“Have you got a read on the anomaly yet?” Ryan had taken Cutter and Connor off to chase after the anomaly that the snake must have come through.

“Not yet. Connor says he’s working on it.”

“Heard that before,” Becker muttered. “Keep me posted, sir, yeah?” 

Unable to resist, Becker moved closer to the snake, towards where he could see the head wrapped around the railing. The snake was tasting the air, its tongue hissing, but it was the biggest sodding tongue Becker had ever seen.

Abby had a point, though. The snake could crush them all if it wanted but instead it was just… waiting. For a snake that probably could have strangled Godzilla, it didn’t actually look all that threatening.

“We’ll try it your way first,” he said to Abby, who beamed at him. “But if it doesn’t work, or if that thing makes even the tiniest move, I will kill it.”

“Understood,” she said, and ran off to the other end of the bridge, to where Stephen and Sarah were. Sarah had been unable to resist the lure of a giant snake. She’d driven over in Becker’s Range Rover, blathering the entire time about how perhaps this was the creature that had inspired the stories about Jormungand and such.

“That’s remarkably decent of you,” Jenny remarked, striding up in her heels. “Where’s the bloodthirst?”

“Perhaps I’m growing as a person,” Becker said, sighing. All these ruddy scientists, they were making him soft.

Jenny patted his arm. “That must hurt.”

Becker scowled and went to apprise his men of the plan.

Half an hour later, the tranquilizers had been distributed and Becker had arranged a firing line. “You’d better hope this works,” he said to Abby, and took aim himself.

One second he had the snake’s head in his sights and the next second it was gone. 

The entire snake. Becker blinked, lowering his tranq gun. “What the hell?” he said, and ran closer, looking over the edge of the bridge into the water. There was no sign of the snake, and they were unlikely to have missed the enormous splash it would have made.

Abby had run over to join him, and she gazed at him, shrugging her shoulders helplessly.

“Sir,” Becker said into his mobile. “Sir, I think you might want to get over here.”

-

“It vanished,” Lester said again. He thought if he said it enough times perhaps it might make sense, or perhaps the whole incident would just go away. “It vanished into thin air, just like that. A bloody great big snake.”

“That’s what I said.” Becker was beginning to sound irritated.

“Well,” Lester said. “That solves our problem, doesn’t it? No snake, nothing to stop.”

“I don’t think it’s as simple as that, sir.”

Lester sighed. “Of course I know it isn’t that simple, Captain. Where do we stand on locating the anomaly?”

“Major Ryan said that Connor thinks he’s nearly there. He’s tracked it into Regent’s Park.”

“Took him long enough. All right, I want you to take--” Lester stopped, focusing instead on his surroundings. A swirling mist was forming before his eyes, Westminster sinking into a thick fog as if from out of nowhere. “Please tell me this has nothing to do with the anomaly, Becker.”

“I have no idea,” Becker said, sounding as confused as he looked. He held his hand out in front of him.

Lester followed suit. He wiggled his fingers and could hardly even see them. “Christ.”

The rest of them came over to join them, stumbling in the fog. “Is the anomaly from Charles Dickens’ London?” Sarah asked. She nearly ran into Stephen, who steadied her and left his arm around her waist.

Ignoring her, Lester turned to Jenny instead. “Ms Lewis, I trust you can deal with the press?”

“Don’t I always?” she said, rhetorically enough, though her voice was tinged with exasperation. 

Lester didn’t envy her trying to explain this away. If he were a kinder person, he might have stayed to help. He had other plans, however. “Mr Hart, you stay here with Ms Lewis. I want you on guard in case our mysterious vanishing snake should return.”

Stephen nodded. “All right. Are you leaving me a team?”

“Take Becker’s team. The rest of us will join Major Ryan and his team at the anomaly, and sort this mess out.”

Though he couldn’t quite make it out through the fog, Lester suspected Becker was arching an eyebrow. “You as well, sir?”

“Yes, me as well. Clearly none of you are making any headway. You lost a giant snake.” Lester strode towards the nearest Range Rover, in defiance of argument. Clearly what this situation needed was a firm hand.

Lester’s hand was the firmest he knew.

-

Becker considered himself an expert in driving in less than ideal circumstances. He had certainly had enough practice at it, both at the ARC and during his service in Afghanistan. That said, driving in this fog had been a nightmare. He was fairly certain he’d driven slower than his gran.

They were traversing Regent’s Park now, making their way to the anomaly. Ryan had already cleared the place of civilians, for which Becker was grateful. He would prefer not to have his record include a civilian accidentally shot due to supernatural fog.

It was sad that he was actually leaning towards this being supernatural. He’d certainly never seen anything like it outside your standard horror film. He was half-expecting Wolfman or something to jump out at them.

He hoped it would jump out at Lester. He’d like to see the look on Lester’s face.

Then again, knowing Lester, he would probably politely ask the thing to get out of his way before he was forced to dirty his suit.

Lester had obliged Becker to give him a gun. Ryan had told him that Lester had once shot at a future predator with an M249. Becker had never entirely believed this. However, seeing the way Lester handled a P226 made Ryan’s story suddenly seem a lot more credible. 

A woman screamed.

Torn out of his musings, Becker raised his gun, looking in the direction of the noise. “Sarah?”

“I’m sorry, it’s nothing,” Sarah said, her voice shaky. “It’s-- ah!”

“Sarah,” Becker said, and moved towards her as quickly as he could manage. “Christ!” 

Bugs. That’s why she had shouted. Little creepy-crawlies moving over the ground, around their feet. They weren’t that little, actually. Tarantula-sized. Becker stomped on a few.

Abby gave him a dirty look Becker could see even through the mist.

“What, going to shout at me for stepping on bugs now?” Becker offered Sarah his hand, which she took.

“I hate bugs,” she muttered, shuddering, and let Becker lead her away.

Lester was staring in distaste at the bugs scurrying away. “I’m no entomologist, but even I know that’s not right.”

“Add it to the list,” Becker said.

“Becker?” Ryan’s voice crackled over the radio.

“Ryan?” The radios hadn’t been working properly since the fog had rolled in.

Ryan’s voice wavered in and out. “…here quickly… should see… girl… anomaly.”

“What? Did you say a girl, sir?”

“Got a girl with us,” Ryan said, before the feed cut out again.

“I think a girl came through the anomaly,” Becker said, looking to Lester.

“I gathered as much,” Lester said sourly, pressing his lips into a thin line. “Hurry up, then. No time to waste.” 

-

The anomaly was located near the northern bank of the lake, in a little grove of trees. The fog had mercifully begun to lift, leaving them with nothing worse than a typical grey London day.

They found Ryan, Cutter, and Connor standing with a young girl of perhaps eleven or twelve, barefoot, wearing a woolen dress that wouldn’t have looked out of place on the set of a fantasy series. Her dark hair hung heavy down her back and her eyes were the most vivid blue Lester had ever seen.

“Heard you lost our snake,” Connor said, prompting Abby to punch him in the arm. “Ow,” he muttered, rubbing the spot.

“This is Faye,” Ryan said, gesturing to the girl.

“Hello, Faye,” Sarah said, smiling.

Faye simply gazed at them with voluminous eyes.

“She came through the anomaly?” Becker asked.

Cutter nodded. “Best as we can make out, anyway. She hasn’t been exactly forthcoming.”

Lester spared her a glance. She would answer him, no doubt - he had extensive experience with stubborn people of all shapes and sizes, not to mention daughters. “Have you tried to determine where the anomaly leads?”

“Ryan stopped us going through,” Cutter said, casting a dark look at the soldier.

“Crazy enough out here,” Ryan said, by way of explanation. “Fuck knows what’s going on through that.”

Lester nodded curtly. He had always appreciated Ryan’s sensible nature. 

“A moment, sir?” Ryan said, inclining his head. “You, too, Becker.”

The three of them walked a short distance away, leaving the others with Faye. 

“I think it’s her,” Ryan said bluntly.

“You think it’s her… what?” Lester prompted.

“I think Faye’s the one causing all this.”

Becker snorted. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Think I don’t know that?”

Lester was inclined to agree with Becker, as much as he hated to admit it. “What makes you say that, Major?”

Ryan’s gaze was towards the girl. “When we found her, she was standing in the fog, content as can be, with a swarm of butterflies around her. When she saw us, she waved her hand and the butterflies were gone.”

“They disappeared?” Becker said. “Like the snake.”

“Like the snake, and the fog, and everything else. Do you know that Connor swore blind he saw a dragon? Just a baby one, he said, but a _dragon._ ”

Lester crossed his arms over his chest. “What exactly are you saying?”

“I’m saying that this girl, whoever she is, is playing games with us.”

Sliding his eyes over to the girl, Lester saw that she had dropped down into the grass. She was dragging her fingers through it, making patterns, and singing. Lester couldn’t make out the words, but he was fairly certain it wasn’t English, or any language he could put a name to.

Sometimes Lester really wondered what he had done to deserve this.

-

Faye wouldn’t talk to them. It was difficult to get her to even look at them, as she was much more interested in the scenery around them. Sarah said that the song she had been singing before, the cadence of the speech was reminiscent of Middle English but the words weren’t. Becker was inclined to agree. He’d read Chaucer.

She was still sitting in the grass, her legs folded up beneath her. She had pulled a handful of flowers out of nowhere (literally out of nowhere, it looked like she’d yanked them up from the dirt when there had only been grass) and was weaving them into a crown.

“Oh, for goodness sake,” Lester muttered, just before he dropped down into the grass in front of Faye.

Becker felt his mouth drop open and closed it carefully. This day was already full of weird occurrences, but watching Lester sitting on the ground in his bespoke suit was perhaps too much.

“Was the snake yours?” Lester asked her. “Did you think we would hurt it?”

Faye blinked at him with large eyes, and then slowly nodded.

“We only wanted to put it to sleep. We were… afraid. We’d never seen anything like it, and we were afraid it would hurt us. Do you understand?”

She nodded again.

“We’re sorry if our actions frightened you.”

“I’m sorry she scared you,” Faye said, her voice like a whisper. “I didn’t mean to.”

Becker was trying not to gape. He never would have thought that, of all of them, it would be Lester who managed to put the girl at ease. He seemed like an entirely different person sitting there with his legs crossed on the grass, chatting with a child.

“It’s all right,” Lester said kindly, placing his hand on Faye’s shoulder. She didn’t pull away. “It was a misunderstanding, wasn’t it?”

Faye ducked her head, and then peered up at Lester through her eyelashes. “I’m not supposed to be here.”

“Did you come through the anomaly? The… the light?” Lester pointed to the anomaly.

“I didn’t know where it would take me. Your world… It isn’t like mine. You don’t have magic?”

Lester shook his head. “Not like yours.”

“I didn’t want to hurt anyone.”

“I know you didn’t, Faye. But I think it’s time you went home. Surely someone will be missing you.”

“My mother,” Faye said, her eyes wide. “You won’t tell her I caused trouble, will you?”

Lester smiled at her, his expression gentle. “Of course not. It will be our secret.”

Faye smiled back, wide and brilliant. She sprang up to her feet, lithe and graceful. “I’d better go.” She started to run towards the anomaly and then turned back, shyly holding out her flower crown to Lester. “You can keep this, if you want?”

“Thank you, Faye,” Lester said, quite seriously. He put the crown on his head.

Faye laughed, the sound of it like bells. She ran, and when the glow from the anomaly touched her, Becker would have sworn he saw the outline of iridescent wings.

“Faye,” he muttered. Christ.

“Well,” Lester said, straightening his tie. “Problem solved, I should think. Major, I don’t think I need to tell you to leave a guard on the anomaly.”

“Already on it, sir,” Ryan said.

Becker smirked at Lester. “Nice crown, sir.”

Lester sniffed and held his head high, ignoring the way Connor, Abby, and Sarah were chuckling in the background. “I make this look good,” he said, and walked off, gun in hand and flower crown on his head.

Becker smiled, and followed. ** __**

**_End_ **


End file.
